Electric igniter for explosive-engines



(No Model.)

H. F. PROBERT. ELECTRIC IGNITER FOR EXPLOSIVE ENGINES. No. 599,354. Patented Feb. 22, 1898.

I as a III 35 3 Eiiflflidlll! WIN UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HUBERT F. PROBERT, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

ELECTRlC IGNITER FOR EXPLOSlVE-ENGINES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 599,354, dated February 22, 1898.

Application filed April 8, 1897. Serial No- 631,274. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HUBERT F PROBlnPtT, a citizen of the United States, residing at Ohicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electric Igniters for Explosive-Engines, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact specification.

My invention relates more particularly to igniters for gas-engines, and it has reference to that class of igniters in which the spark is produced by first closing the electrodes together and then at the proper time permitting them to suddenly snap asunder.

The primary object of my invention is to provide an improved and simple form of igniter in which the spark is produced by the separation of comparatively fiat surfaces as contradistinguished from electrodes having the common attenuated form heretofore employed and in which the parts may be readily and accurately adjusted for causing the spark to occur at the desired instant.

WVith these ends in view myinvention consists in certain features of novelty in the construction, combination, and arrangement of parts by which the said objects and certain other objects hereinafter described are attained, all as fully described with reference to the accompanying drawings and more particularly pointed out in the claim.

In the said drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of a gas-engine provided with my improved igniter. Fig. 2 is an enlarged plan view of a part of the gas-engine cylinder and the igniter. Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 3 3, Fig. 2. Fig. l is a detail view of the adjusting mechanism. Fig.

5 is a side elevation of the mechanism shown in Figs. 2 and 3. Fig. 6 is a view similar to Fig. 5, showing but one of the pawls and that one in its lowest position. Fig. 7 is a detail side elevation of the form of pawl used in the construction of my improved igniter. Fig. 8 is a bottom view thereof. Fig. 9 is a detail end view of the sleeve carrying the stop hereinafter described, and Fig. 10 is a side view thereof.

My improved igniter may be applied to any form of gas or explosive engine. In the form shown in the drawings, 1 represents the cylinder, 2 the driving-shaft, and 3 an eccentric on such driving-shaft which imparts motion to the igniter. The upper end of the cylinder is provided with the usual igniting-chamher 4:, whose side is closed by a removable stopper or plug 5, bolted or otherwise secured in place and having an extended bearing 6, in which is journaled a rocker-shaft 7, having one electrode 8, secured to the inner end thereof, within the chamber 4;. This electrode 8 is preferably given the form more clearly shown in Figs. 5 and 6, having a foot-piece 9, which rests upon the bottom of the chamber 4 when the parts are in their normal or supported position. The upper side of the electrode Sis squared or flattened and when raised to the limit of its upward movement comes squarely against the lower end of the other electrode 10, which is also squared or flattened, so that when the electrodes separate there will be no opportunity afforded for the destruction or deterioration of the contacting surfaces by the heat of the spark. This electrode 10 may be in the form of a screw driven through a flanged plug 11, having a head at one end resting above the insulation 12 and a nut 13 at the other end bearing under the insulation 14, the intermediate portion of the plug 11 being also surrounded byinsnlation 15.

At the outer end of the bearing 6 is a pawl 16, which is mounted loosely upon the shaft 7 and is provided on its outer side with a shoulder or lug 17 and arranged against the outer side of the pawl 16 is a sleeve 18, which is securely fastened to the shaft 7 by means of a pin or key 19 or other suitable device, and which is likewise provided with a lug or stop 20, arranged at its inner end and adapted to come into engagement with the lug 17 on the pawl 16. These two portions 17 and 20 taken together are less than the entire circumference of the shaft 7, so that the pawl and shaft will have a certain amount of relative or independent movement. \Vound upon the sleeve 18 is a coil-spring 21, whose outer end is secured to the sleeve or to the shaft in any convenient mannersuch, for instance,

electrode 8. Hence when the outer end of the pawl 16 is elevated the electrode 8 will also be elevated through the intermediary of the spring and may thus be brought into contact with the upper electrode 10 before the shoulder 17 has approached the stop 20, which is fixed to the shaft 7, any material extent. After the electrodes come into contact, however, and the rotation of the shaft 7 ceases the further upward movement of the pawl 16' can only be accomplished by overcoming the inertia of the spring 21. If therefore the pawl 16 should be released when its upward movement has been continued some distance above the point at which the electrodes come into contact, the force of the spring 21, being more active than that of gravity,would throw the lower end of the shoulder 17 against the upper end of the stop 20, and consequently snap the electrode 8 away from the electrode 10 with great rapidity and produce the spark by this sudden separation of the flat surfaces. I will now describe the means for causing this elevation and sudden release of the pawl 16.

23 represents a vertically-reciprocal rod mounted in suitable keepers 24:, secured to the side of the cylinder 1 and carrying at its upper end an outwardly-projecting pin 25, securely fixed thereto in any suitable manner, such as by passing a reduced end 26 thereof through the end of the rod 23 and clamping the samein place by nut 27. Mounted loosely upon this pin is another pawl 28, which is the lifting-pawl, and which is constructed, like the pawl 16,with a shoulder 29, formed on the outer end thereof, such shoulder being the same as shoulder 17 on pawl 16. The pin 25 is also provided with a stop 30 like the stop 20, secured to the shaft 7. This stop for convenience in construction is formed on a sleeve 31, the construction being the same as that shown in Figs. 9 and 10, the sleeve being secured to the pin 25 by a pin or key 32. Coiled upon the sleeve 31 and secured to the pin 32 is a coil-spring 33, whose inner end is inserted into the shoulder 29 on the pawl 28 and tends to pull the pawl downwardly, the pawl 23 being capable of limited upward movement against the tension of the springs 33. The pawls 16 and 28 are each provided with a flat side running to a knife-edge, such as the edge 34:, (shown in Fig. 7,) while the opposite side of each is gradually rounded backwardly from such edge, and these fiat surfaces are arranged face to face. hen the rod 23 moves backwardly, it causes the pawl 28 to engage under the pawl 16 while the latter is in the position illustrated in Fig. 6, and thus raises the pawl16 until the inertia of the spring 21 has been overcome to a considerable extent, and as the extremities of the pawls pass each other the knife-edges 34. are the last portions to disengage, thus allowing the spring 21 to return the pawl 16 suddenly and without any slow preliminary movement. The pawl 16 returns to its normal position, (shown in Fig. 6,) and as the rod 23 descends the rounded back of the pawl 28 descends upon the rounded back of the pawl 16, and the inertia of the spring 33 being overcome the outer extremity of the pawl 28 is deflected upwardly by this engagement until the extremities of the pawls pass each other, whereupon the pawl 28 becomes the lower one and is again in readiness to engage and lift the pawl 16. In this return movement of the pawl 28, however, it will be seen that the knife-edges 3a do not again come in contact, the rounded back portion being so formed as to receive the wear, and the parts disengage before the knife-edges can again come together.

The rod 23 is reciprocated at each revolution of the engine by the eccentric 3, having a strap 35 connected to the rod 23 by the eccentric-rod 36, and in order that the time of sparking may be varied-that is to say, the time at which the pawl 28 passes the pawl 16 in its upward movement may be varied-I render the rod 23 adjustable with reference to the eccentric 3. This may be accomplished by providing the upper end of the rod 36 with an angle-iron 37, pivoted at 38 to the rod 36, and having its lateral portion provided with a perforation through which the lower threaded end of the rod 23 passes, the rod 23 being adjustably secured to the iron 37 by nuts 39 threaded thereon above and below such portion of the angle-iron. Thus by elongating the connection between the pawl 28 and the eccentric 3 such pawl will sooner engage the pawl 16 and as a consequence sooner release it with reference to the stroke of the piston.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new therein, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

An igniter having in combination the electrodes; a rocker-shaft for moving one of said electrodes against the other, the pawl 16 sleeved loosely upon said rocker-shaft and having the lug 17; the sleeve 18 secured on said shaft against said pawl fitted against said pawl and having the stop 20, the spring 21 surrounding said sleeve and being secured thereto and also to said pawl and forcing said pawl and lug together; the reciprocatory rod 23; the laterally-projecting pin 25 secured to the end thereof and extending substantially parallel with said shaft, the pawl 28 sleeved loosely upon said pin 25 and having the lug 29; the sleeve 31 secured to said shaft against said pawl 28 and having the stop 30; aspring for forcing said lug 29 against said lug 30 and carrying the extremity of the pawl 28 away fromv the pawl 16 said pawls being arranged permanently in the same plane and in the line of movement of each other, and means for reciprocating said rod 23, substantially as set forth.

HUBERT F. PROBERT. Witnesses:

F. A. HoPKINs, EDNA B. JOHNSON. 

